La Liga leaders Real Madrid will be out without Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale for their upcoming La Liga fixture against Espanyol tomorrow after coach Zinedine Zidane confirmed the news. It will be an important game for the Los Galacticos since a win against Espanyol will see coach Zinedine Zidane match the 16 straight wins set by Pep Guardiola's Barcelona in the 2010-11 season.
Ronaldo scored the equaliser in Madrid's comeback win against former club Sporting Lisbon 2-1 on Wednesday in the Champions League but is suffering from flu, while Bale is still carrying a hip injury he sustained against the Portuguese. However, both the pacy wingers are expected to be fit when Villarreal visit the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday.
“Cristiano will not travel with us, he has a sore throat, and he will stay at home. He is not ready [for Espanyol tomorrow]," he told reporters.
"Bale had a strong knock on his hip and we will not take any chances. We have important players who can replace the ones injured.
"I want to have Gareth at 100% for a very difficult game on Wednesday [against Villarreal]. Tomorrow he might get a bang in the same spot & be out for 10 days, or more."
"This is a group, we have important players so when a player has something wrong it's better for someone else to come in and do well, we always have to think about the team," he added.
Also read: Zinedine Zidane blasts Real Madrid squad after the win against Sporting CP
Zidane said that the Portuguese star's absence could favour Colombian James Rodrigues to get some game time after assisting Alvaro Morata in his 95th-minute winner over Sporting. The Real Madrid boss has also backed countryman Karim Benzema after his disappointing return to action after a long-term injury.
"James is training very well, he will play games," Zidane added. "Things have not changed. He is committed and wants to play.
"If Cristiano, Gareth and Karim [Benzema] are at 100 percent, then they play. But that does not mean they must always play. We have many games.
"My idea is to always rotate so that players think at any moment they will be called to play. They all need to play, that's my idea."
Real have won their last three league visits to Espanyol, with Ronaldo scoring five goals in a 6-0 thrashing last season. But now with key players missing out, the youngsters will look forward to continuing Los Blanco’s 100% record.
